LONELINESS IS ONE OF THE MOST URGENT

SOCIAL AND PUBLIC HEALTH CRISES OF OUR TIME.

The Cost of Loneliness Project™catalyzes a national imperative to spark commitment to,

and investment in, combating loneliness and its devastating emotional, physical, and economic consequences.

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"Loneliness is personal, and it is also political. Loneliness is collective… We are in this together, this accumulation of scars… What matters is kindness; what matters is solidarity."

Olivia Laing

THE PREMISE

Loneliness is often defined as the distressing feeling generated by a lack of meaningful, intimate, and reciprocal interactions. One might describe it as emotional isolation. Exacerbated by its gross under-recognition, loneliness is rapidly emerging as the great public health crisis of our time. Academic research and an onslaught of headline news reveal that loneliness is to suicide, addiction, bullying, obesity, gastro-intestinal disease, metabolic syndrome, type II diabetes, cardiovascular disease, hematological conditions, and more, as poor hygiene is to infection. While loneliness is not the only cause of these and other consequences, it is a highly significant one. Loneliness can be, in a word, deadly. Just as the loss of millions of lives to infection in the 14th and 19th centuries required combating terrifyingly poor hygiene, today we must battle loneliness to prevent a public health catastrophe, both economically and personally. While many organizations throughout our country are deeply dedicated to preventing and battling the consequences of loneliness and supporting our communities, The Cost of Loneliness Project™ seeks to provide a unifying voice to recognize and combat loneliness across all demographics. It is our current healthcare imperative.

Between 25-45% of American adults report being chronically lonely. (Fortune, June 2016)

Loneliness increases the odds of a premature death by 26%. (J.Cacioppo, Univ. of Chicago)

"Loneliness and the feeling of being unwanted is the most terrible poverty."

Mother Teresa

Why Now?

The last 20 years have arguably seen the most rapid transformation to our social health in the history of humankind. We must take a collective deep breath and evaluate the impact of these socially disruptive changes, such as: excessive social media use, decreased organizational memberships, fewer and delayed marriage/partnership, increased working from home, unemployment, a surging senior population, limited outside play and experiences with nature, and reduced time to build meaningful relationships. Each of these drivers impact feelings of community and belonging, sense of individual purpose, and reciprocal intimacy in harmful ways. As naturally social beings, humans may find the impact of these drivers devastating; in turn, increasing loneliness, stress, and physical and emotional outcomes. We must pause now and plan our future to maximize these feelings of community, sense of purpose, and overall intimacy.

Loneliness is one of, but not the only, cause of such devastating outcomes as: suicide, substance abuse, and major depressive disorder. Imagine if reducing loneliness could reduce the striking costs, both societally and individually, of these and other consequences.

Suicide Costs The Us Approximately $51 Billion Annually. (CDC Estimates For Treatment And Productivity)

Substance Abuse Costs The Us Approximately $700 Billion Annually. (NIDA)

Major Depressive Disorder, Suicide, And Addiction Cost The Us Approximately $960 Billion Annually. (CDC, NIMH)

"We live in a society bloated with data yet starved for wisdom. We're connected 24/7, yet anxiety, fear, depression and loneliness is at an all-time high. We must course-correct."

Elizabeth Kapu'uwailani Lindsey

We're just getting started

The Cost of Loneliness Project™ will connect, convene, and catalyze to identify challenges and research needs; to innovate, share, and leverage solutions; to serve as a resource repository on loneliness; to increase awareness of the costs of loneliness with a goal of destigmatizing this devastating condition; and to create a platform for sharing ideas and solutions. The project will accomplish this through the following mechanisms (not all inclusive): relationship building, advocacy group support, ambassador outreach, personal outreach, a robust website, podcasts, education, speaking engagements, annual summits, working salons, newsletters, and recognition.

Launching with a diverse coalition of influential experts and a compelling multimedia strategy, our goal is to transform the cultural mindset from treatment of the symptoms and outcomes to prevention of the cause.

"Loneliness is my least favorite thing about life. The thing that I’m most worried about is just being alone without anybody to care for or someone who will care for me."

"Keep in mind that to avoid loneliness, many people need both a social circle and an intimate attachment. Having just one of two may still leave you feeling lonely."

Gretchen Rubin

ABOUT THE TEAM

Lucy RoseFounder & President

Lucy Rose is the founder and leader of The Cost of Loneliness Project™. Lucy is a world traveler, a global relationship builder, and an award-winning pharmaceutical health strategy, regulatory, and communications expert. Her education and experience includes: Salem College BS Biology, Wake Forest University Physician Assistant graduate, MBA, senior executive at the Food and Drug Administration (communications and regulatory), and pharmaceutical industry executive. She has consulted with hundreds of companies and organizations in regulatory, medical, and strategic drug business development, communications, and leadership considerations. She speaks extensively on these topics all over the world.

Lucy has focused her professional career on driving strategic thought and expert execution around the targeted concept of Health Care communication. With deep insights in the national discourse on the science of impact, Lucy is the US expert on shaping the dialogue on direct to consumer messaging of complex medical information. A trained clinician, Lucy is both a scientist and a strategist. Having worked inside over 400 companies, ranging from the earliest start-up to the most lucrative Fortune 100, she has also profoundly explored the constructs of ‘work’ and ‘work environment’. She thus brings extensive depth to the ideas around the concepts of loneliness carrying great personal and workplace financial and psychosocial impact.

The contents of The Cost of Loneliness Project™ site, such as text, graphics, images, and other material contained on The Cost of Loneliness Project™ site ("Content") are for informational purposes only. The Content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. This site is not monitored for any messages or information related to an individual's mental or physical health.

Links to third party websites are provided solely as a convenience, and the presence of such a link does not imply a responsibility for the linked site or its functionality, nor is it an endorsement of the linked site, its operator, or its contents. This website and the Contents are provided "as is" without warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied, including, but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or non-infringement.